Automatically-threading loom shuttle



Dec. 16, 1930.

c D. BROWN AUTOMATICALLY THREADING LOOM SHUTTLE Filed Feb. 24, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet l //\/l ENTURI Mb-W BY ATTUR/VEY Dec. 16, 1930. c. D. BROWN 1,785,219

AUTOMATICALLY THREADING LOOM SHUTTLE Filed Feb. 24. 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 16, 1930 warren STATES PATET orFicE CARL D. BROWN, OF HOPEDALE, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TQ DRAPER CORPORA- TION, OI HOPEDALE, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION'OE MAINE AUTOMATICALLY-THREADING LOOM SHUTTLE Application filed February 24, 1930. Serial No. 430,501.

This invention relates to automatically threading loom shuttles wherein the filling in the shuttle is changed from time to time.

Shuttles of this general type are usually provided with some character of thread tensioning device in an attempt to provide the desired tension to the thread during weaving. In order that perfect cloth may be woven, the tension exerted on the thread following replenishment of filling should be the same on the first pick of the shuttle as exists during subsequent weaving, and many attempts have been made to secure this desired end, but with only partial success. Should the tension on the first pick ofthe shuttle following replenishment differ from that during subsequent weaving, which is usually the case, the lack of uniform tension will be manifested in the finished cloth. This is particularly true in weaving with certain kinds of filling, such as silk, artificial silk, rayon, and the like.

Among the attempts that have heretofore been made to secure uniform tension on the thread, the incoming filling thread has been wrapped about a rigid arm and reliance. is therefore placed upon the frictional engage ment of the thread with the rigid arm. During the weaving operation, however, the thread will at times exert a pull from the shuttle and at other times will becomeslack, so that the rigid arm heretofore employed and about which the thread has been laid will not function to take up the slack, even though it may function in a degree, at least, in exerting tension on the thread during the pull of the thread.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide an automatically threading loom shuttle with a yielding tensioning member extending longitudinally of the shuttle and about which the thread is passed or wrapped on the first pick of the shuttle following replenishment, the result being that while the tensioning member exerts a degree of frictional retardation to the withdrawal of the thread during weaving, it will also yield to the pull of the thread, so that when the thread becomes slack, the yielding action of the tensioning member serves to take up the slack and thereby maintain equal and uniform tension of the thread during the entire weaving operation. 7

More specifically stated, the invention comprises a yielding thread tensioning member extending longitudinally of the shuttle about which the thread is passed or wrapped on the first pick of the shuttle following replenishment, and having its forward end secured to the shuttle, with its rear end free, so that the tensioning member may act additionally to the frictional retardation of the thread by a yielding action which will flex the tensioning member under the pull of the wrapped thread and serve to take up any slack that occurs in the thread during weav mg. I 7

The invention and novelfeatures thereof will best be made clear from the following description and the accompanying drawings of one good practical form thereof.

In the drawings:

Fig. -1 is a plan view of an automatically threading loom shuttle containing the present invention, some of the parts being broken away, and shows the relation of parts on replenishment of filling prior to the picking operation;

Fig. 2 is an exploded perspectiveview of a shuttle containing the present invention and showing the relation of parts when the shuttle is threaded; Y

Fig. 3 is a View similar to that of Fig. 1 showing a slightly modified form of the invention but with the shuttle fully threaded; and

Fig. 4 is a perspective View of a shuttle containing the modified form of the invention, with the top portion of the threading block removed.

The shuttle 1 may be of the usual automatically threading type having the bobbin chamber 22 for containing the supply of filling or thread 3, and frontward of the bobbin chamber the shuttle is provided with a longitudinal thread passage 4 and a side delivery eye 5 which communicates therewith as usual in automatically threading shuttles.

The terms forward and rear are herein used in a relative sense, the former signifying that portion of the shuttle containing the side delivery eye, and the latter referring to the parts back or in rear thereof towards the bobbin chamber.

It is now the common practice to pro-' vide automatically threading shuttles with a threading block to insure that on the first pick of the shuttle following replenishment the filling thread will pass downwardly into the longitudinal thread passage, and on the return pick of the shuttle it will be fully threaded and the thread delivered from the side delivery eye. in the present instance of the invention, the threading block consists of atop plate 6 hav ing a lateral projection towards the side delivery eye through which a screw or bolt 7 is passed. for holding the top plate to the shuttle, and an opening 8 affords a passage for the thread a downwardly into the longitudinal thread passage on replenishment of filling.

The front end portion of the top plate is provided with a thread deflector 9 forming a passageway 10 between it and the wood of the shuttle to the side delivery eye, so that on the second pick of the shuttle foil wing replenishment the shuttle will be fully threaded.

The top plate forms a convenient automatically threading structure, but so far as the present invention is concerned, the threading block for effecting automatically the threading of the shuttle may be of any usual and well-known type.

In accordance with the present invention, a yielding thread tensioning member extends longitudinally of the thread passage 4: and a thread director or guide is provided for causing the thread to be laid about the tensioning member on the first pick of the shuttle following replenishment.

in the present instance, the thread tensioning member consists of an elongated yielding arm 11 which has its forward end secured to the shuttle by a screw or bolt 12 and from this point the tensioning member extends rearwardly towards the bobbin chamber and in its length it is provided with a series of bends 13.

The rear end of the yielding tensioning member is free and is provided with a thread director or guide for directing the thread in turns about the tensioning member 11 on the first pick of the shuttle following replenishment. The number of turns may vary, of course, within the scope of the present invention, the construction being such that the thread director or guide causes the thread to be wrapped about the tensioning member on the first pick of the shuttle following replenishment and as the thread swirls from the end of the bobbin or filling carrier. The thread director or guide in the present instance consists of a spiral coil 1%, the end portion 15 of which is free or open, so that when the thread has been. passed about the tensioning member the desired number of turns, it will pass into the central portion of the thread director or guide 14; and thereafter maintain the general position indicated in Fig. 2.

Owing to the swirling action of the thread from the end of the bobbin as the shuttle is picked following replenishment, the thread (L will first be laid about the forward end of the tensioning member and then successively about other portions towards the thread director or guide as the shuttle continues its flight, until finally when the thread has reached the final bend in the tensioning member, as at 16, it will be deflected into the open thread director or guide and thereafter the pull of the thread will be substantially longitudinal of the yielding tensioning member.

On the first pick of the shuttle following replenishment, the thread will be subjected to the tensioning effect of the yielding tensioning member and finally the thread will be delivered from the side delivery eye on the next pick of the shuttle, so that during subsequent weaving with the thread delivered from the side delivery eye any pull of the thread either as it unwinds from the end of the filling carrier or bobbin or as it is delivered from the side delivery eye, will cause the yielding tensioning member to be deflected under the thread pull, and when slack occurs the yielding character of the tensioning member 11 in resuming its original position will take up the slack, so that throughout the weaving operation the tension on the thread will be substantially uniform.

It will be noted, as indicated in Fig. 2, that the forward end portion of the tensioning member 11 is bent downwardly, as at 1'7, and a loop is formed on the part 18 of the tensioning member, which underlies the head of the screw 1:2, the terminal. portion of the tensioning member, as at 19, resting, in the present instance, against the wall of the longitudinal thread passage.

it may be desired in certain instances to provide a guide between the longitudinal thread passage and the side delivery eye about which the thread may pass on its way to the side delivery eye, and such guide is indicated at 20.

In the modified form of the invention, as indicated in Figs. 3 and 4, the thread tensioning member 21 is mounted in the longitudinal thread passage 4, as in Figs. 1 and 2, but instead of extending in substantial parallelism with the longitudinal axis of the thread passage, the modified form of the tensioning member 21. extends at an angle thereto, as indicated in 8, and is provided with bends 13 which may be substantially the same as the similar bends in the preferred form of the invention.

In the modified form of the invention, the forward end of the yielding tensioning memher is secured by a screw 22 from which point the yielding tensioning member extends longitudinally of the thread passage in an angular position, as indicated by full lines in Fig. 3. The rear end portion of the tensioning member 2l, Figs. 3 and 4, is provided with a thread director 23 of generally circular form, havin an opening 24, with the result that on the first pick of the shuttle following replenishment the swirling thread will be guided by the thread director 23 about the yielding tensioning member 21, the first turns of the thread being formed at the forward end of the tensioning member, as at r 25, and the successive turns of thread extending rearwardly until when the thread has assumed the position at 26, the angular direction of the thread from the bobbin or filling carrier will cause the thread to enter the opening 24 in the thread director and thereafter lead substantially central thereof.

During the weaving operation as the thread is withdrawn from the shuttle it will pass about the end of the bobbin or filling carrier and consequently be deflected laterally, with the result that should the thread be stretched or tautened, the yielding character of the tensioning member will permit the latter to yield, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 8, and when the thread becomes slack the yielding action of the tensioning member as it moves to its normal position will take up such slack; thus during the entire weaving operation the tension of the thread will remain uniform and substantially constant.

In the modified form of the invention of Figs. 3 and 4, the thread a is shown as positioned about a guide or post 27 on its way to the side delivery eye, and while this is a preferred construction it may not always be necessary.

hat is claimed is 1. An automatically threading loom shuttle having a bobbin chamber, a longitudinal thread passage and a side delivery eye communicating therewith that the shuttle may be automatically threaded, a thread tensioning member having its forward end secured to the shuttle and resiliently responsive to deflection by the thread as it is withdrawn from the shuttle, and thread director positioned between said forward end and the supply of filling for directing a plurality of coils of the thread about the resilient tensioning member as the shuttle is picked.

2. An automatically threading loom shuttle having a bobbin chamber, a longitudinal thread passage and a side delivery eye communicating therewith that the shuttle may be automatically threaded, a thread tensioning member having its forward end secured to the shuttle and resiliently responsive to deflection by the thread as it is withdrawn from the shuttle, and a thread director carried by the free rear end of the resilient tensioning member for directing the thread about the resilient tensioning member to cause the thread to be automatically wrapped thereupon by its swirling or revolving unwinding movement as the shuttle is picked.

3. An automatically threading loom shuttle having a bobbin chamber, a. longitudinal thread passage and a side delivery eye communicating therewith that the shuttle may be automatically threaded, a yielding thread tensioning member having its forward end secured to the shuttle near the side delivery eye and responsive to deflection by the pull of the thread as it is withdrawn from the shuttle during weaving, and a thread director supported by the "free rear end of the resilient tensioning member for automatically directing aplurality of coils of the thread about theresilient tensioning member as the shuttle is picked following replenishment of fillin 4. in automatically threading loom shuttle having a bobbin chamber, a longitudinal thread passage and a side delivery eye communicating therewith that the shuttle may be automatically threaded, a thread tensioning memberextending longitudinally of the shuttle and having its forward end secured to the shuttle and its rear end adjacent the bobbin chamber andfree and responsive to deflection from its normal position by the pull of the thread during weaving, and a curved thread guide formed on the rear free end of the resilient tensioning member for directing a pluralityof coils of the thread about thelongitudinal length of the resilient tensioning member on the first pick ofthe shuttle following replenishment.

5. An automatically threading loom shuttle having, a bobbin chamber, a longitudinal thread passage and a side delivery eye communicating therewith that the shuttle may be automatically threaded, a yielding thread tensioning member having its forward end secured to the shuttle near the side delivery eye and responsive to deflection by the pull of the thread as it iswithdra-wn from the shuttle during weaving, a series of bends formed in the longitudinal length of the resilient tensioning member, and a thread director supported by the free rear end of the resilient tensioning member for directing the thread about the resilient tensioning member as the shuttle is picked following replenishment of filling.

6. An automatically threading loom shuttle having a bobbin chamber, a longitudinal thread passage and a side delivery eye communicating therewith that the shuttle may be automatically threaded, a thread tensioning member constituted as an elongatedyielding arm extending longitudinally of the thread passage with its forward end secured tothe shuttle and its rear end extending towards the bobbin chamber and freefor deflection by the thread as it is withdrawn from the shuttle and means for causing the thread to be automatically coiled about the yielding arm as the shuttle is picked following replenishment 7. An automatically threading loom shuttle having a bobbin chamber, a longitudinal thread passage and a side delivery eye communicating therewith that the shuttle may be automatically threaded, a thread tensioning member constituted as an elongated yielding arm having a series of bends in its length and extending longitudinally of the thread passage with its forward end secured to the shuttle and its rear end extending towards the bobbin chamber and free for deflection by the thread as it is withdrawn from the shuttle, and means for causing the thread to be automatically coiled about the yielding arm as the shuttle is picked following replenishment.

8. An automatically threading loom shuttle having a bobbin chamber, a longitudinal thread passage and a side delivery eye, a thread tensioning member constituted as a yielding arm extending longitudinally of the thread passage normally at an angle to the longitudinal axis thereof and having its end remote from the bobbin chamber secured in fixed position and its end adjacent the bobbin chamber free that the tensioning member may yield to the pull of the thread during weaving and means for causing the thread to be automatically laid in a plurality of coils about the yielding arm on the first pick of the shuttle following replenishment.

9. An automatically threading loom shuttle having a bobbin chamber, a longitudinal thread passage and aside delivery eye, a thread tensioning member constituted as a yielding arm extending longitudinally of the thread passage normally at an angle to the longitudinal axis thereof and having its end remote from the bobbin chamber secured in iixed position and its end adjacent the bobbin chamber free that the tensioning member may yield to the pull of the thread during weaving, and a thread guide having a thread receiving opening carried by the free end of the tensioning member to cause the thread to be wrapped about the tensioning member by its swirling or revolving unwinding movement as the shuttle is picked and then enter the open thread guide.

10. An automatically threading loom shuttle having a bobbin chamber and side delivery eye, a thread tensioning member constituted as a yielding arm extending longitudinally of the shuttle and having its end remote from the bobbin chamber secured in fixed position and its end adjacent the bobbin chamber free that the tensioning member may yield to the pull of the thread and take up slack during Weaving and a thread director for causing the thread to be laid about the yielding arm as the shuttle is picked and name to this specification.

CARL D. BROWN.

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